Fiat 550 is a Ferrari 458-powered Fiat 500

The Ferrari 458 Italia and Fiat 500 are two of the finest cars on our roads today, although the pair operate at different ends of the performance spectrum. Have you stopped to wonder, though, what would happen if the two were to mate and give birth to automotive offspring?

If a Ferrari 458 Italia canoodled with a Fiat 500, this might be the outcome.

No, of course you haven’t, but Lazzarrini Design has. It’s devised what it thinks would be the ultimate Fiat 500 — one which is powered by the V8 engine designed for the 458 Italia. They’ve dubbed it, possibly in between tokes of something extremely hallucinogenic, the Fiat 550.

The Fiat 550 concept is recognisable as a Fiat 500 of sorts, but features a wide body kit that stretches the rear by 300mm and the front by 200mm. It also has a more aggressive front end, a huge air intake on the roof and a rear wing that should provides downforce by virtue of the fact it’s so bloody massive.

Underneath the swanky blue paintwork, which was conceived to pay homage to the Italian football team, Lazzarrini Design envisages the same 4.5-litre V8 that powers the 458 Italia. To accommodate it, they’ve removed the rear seating and wedged the thing where the boot used to be.

The company imagines the car would use the same suspension, differential and transmission as the 458 Italia. However the engine would have to be detuned, it says. Instead of the 570hp it produces in the 458 Italia, it’d be tamed slightly to produce a mere 550 or else it has the potential to rip the entire thing to pieces.

So, what are the chances of this thing actually becoming a reality? Slim to none, we’d suggest, although Lazzarrini Design remains hopeful. The people who penned the design are looking for $550,000 worth of investment in order to actually build a prototype.

They’re clearly insane, but stranger things have happened. Nissan has confirmed it will be building its bonkers Juke R, which marries a compact SUV with supercar propulsion. If you’d like to donate cash then head over to Lazzarrini Design’s Web site for more info or simply check out the pictures below. Don’t forget to comment below or on our Facebook page.

Images:

The Fiat 550 features a wide body kit, a lengthened wheelbase and an aggressive new look.

It features a large roof-mounted air intake and an even bigger rear spoiler.

Downforce, anyone?

The 4.5-litre engine from the 458 Italia has been wedged in the rear.

It’s been detuned from 570hp to 550hp.

There’s a slim chance, that id Lazzarrini can raise enough money, that this thing will live.

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